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Latin American Organizations Gather in Chile to Strenghten Whale Protection

Tuesday, 16 October, 2007

Santiago, Chile

For the first time, a significant number of regional civil organizations
specializing in cetacean research and conservation have gathered in Chile to
strengthen regional policies for the conservation and non lethal use of whale
populations in the Latin American region.

More than twenty representatives of fifteen non government organizations
(NGOs) from ten Latin American countries are meeting in Santiago de Chile from
October 15th to the 18th in order to coordinate strategies with a view toward
the 60th Annual Meeting of the International Whaling Commission (IWC), which
will be held in the capital of our country in June of 2008.

The upcoming meeting of the IWC in Chile is a historic event, as it will
be the third time the IWC, the only agency with worldwide authority over the
issue of whales, will meet in Latin America since it was founded in 1946, and
the second time, after 23 years, that the annual meeting will be held in South
America.

During the NGO gathering, representatives of Argentina, Brazil, Chile,
Colombia, Costa Rica, Guatemala, Mexico, Panama, Uruguay and Venezuela will
broach issues of regional interest such as the creation of Whale Sanctuaries,
responsible development of whale watching and strengthening cetacean research
programs on a regional level, among others.

The large scale meeting, coordinated by the Center for Cetacean
Conservation (CCC of Chile), the Whale Conservation Institute (ICB of Argentina)
and the Cethus Foundation (Argentina), and sponsored by the International Fund
for Animal Welfare (IFAW), includes a presentation before the Environment and
National Resources Committee of the Chilean Senate, to show the importance of
consolidating a regional policy for the conservation and non lethal use of
cetaceans in Latin America as an alternative of sustainable development that
would benefit over 500 communities worldwide socially, environmentally and
economically, generating annual income in excess of US$ 1,200 million.

For Beatriz Bugeda, director of the International Fund for Animal Welfare
in Latin America (IFAW) "One of the goals of this gathering of Latin American
Non Government Organizations is to show our firm support for the work being done
by the Buenos Aires Group in favor of whale conservation within the framework of
the IWC. The bloc of Latin American countries will play a strategic role in the
upcoming IWC meeting in Chile, and these countries’ votes will be crucial.”

In turn, Diego Taboada, director of the Whale Conservation Institute of
Argentina said, “through this meeting, we expect to strengthen the commitment of
the civil organizations in Latin America to seek solutions to the environmental
threats faced by cetaceans and, especially, to the permanent pressure exerted by
the “whaling” countries to resume worldwide commercial exploitation.” Taboada
added, “We hope that, through the contribution of the scientific community to
this international organization and, together with government authorities,
information about the status of the whale populations in the region will
increase and be strengthened.”

Cecilia Gasparrou dof the Cethus Foundation of Argentina remarked on the
importance of this meeting and, especially, “that Latin American countries are
making their own interests and agenda felt within the IWC.” Gasparrou also noted
the convenience of the region adopting a common position at other international
forums dealing with cetacean conservation, such as the Convention on
International Trade of Endangered Species (CITES).

The meeting with the Senate presented an opportunity to request its
support for the creation of a Chilean Whale Sanctuary before the IWC meeting is
held in 2008, which would prohibit commercial and scientific whaling once and
for all in the territorial ocean and exclusive economic zone of the Republic of
Chile.

In this context, Bárbara Galletti, president of the Center for Cetacean
Conservation said, “Chile belongs to the bloc of Latin American conservationist
countries that are working actively within the IWC to consolidate the sovereign
right to use the whales of the southern hemisphere through non lethal
methodologies. However, it is paradoxical that, under Chilean legislation,
cetacean species are only protected by an administrative fishing regulation that
prohibits their capture through the year 2025. We believe that the NGO meeting
in Santiago is a valuable opportunity to progress toward the creation of a
Chilean Whale Sanctuary that will fully reflect the foreign policy promoted by
the country internationally with regard to the conservation and non lethal use
of cetaceans and the interests of its citizens”.